Specks of gold shimmered in her deep brown eyes as she looked up at me. “So a club is what it’s called?” she asked, curiosity in her tone. “I have a club no more than my mother had a Bratva.”
“That may be true.” I sipped my coffee. “But you do have a husband and a house. And because you’re mine, you have my protection and anything you need. And Iamthe club.”
She sipped her coffee, a slight blush hitting her cheeks. I hadn’t seen a woman truly blush in a long time. I didn’t obsess over innocent women. In fact, I don’t even know what I’d do with one. I wasn’t sure she was untouched and I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. And the fact that I was unsure about that perplexed me.
“Breakfast is waiting. I was told we are leaving today.”
“Yeah. Need to get back to the clubhouse. Your things will be shipped soon. Do you have any luggage?”
“Theo already put it in the car.”
“Let’s eat then so we can get moving.”
I was ready to be home. Everyone had a good night’s rest so I decided we’d make the whole way, only stopping to top off our tanks and let the ladies stretch their legs a bit. We weren’t moving inventory so we could stay on the highway the whole way, and it would save a little time.
Katarina had taken the first leg in the SUV with Ma, and she went inside at the gas station when we stopped in Virginia. It was still bright out and was getting close to rush hour so the gas station was busy. I followed her in, then waited for her after I was done in the bathroom. She grabbed a diet soda and a candy bar, so I went with her to the counter. She pulled out a card, but I already had cash out.
The cashier nervously looked between us, so I set my jaw and dropped the cash. “I’ll take this and I need $3o on pump three. Keep the change,” I gritted.
She grabbed her items and I motioned for her to walk ahead of me, opening the door as we headed out. I lit up a smoke, taking a few drags on the sidewalk.
“I have my own money,” she said as she twisted the cap of her drink, the carbonation hissing.
“I thought you had nothing?” I mocked.
She stared hard, probably fighting an eyeroll if she was as much like Penny as I thought. “I’m sure you know I have a trust fund and I get a certain percentage each year. I got a bonus for marrying you.” The look on her face after the first sip of her sodadid something to me.
I took a final drag and jammed the cigarette into the sand on top of the trash can then motioned for her to head back to the gas pumps. “We don’t like to use cards. Plus, what’s mine is yours, right?”
Credit and debit cards left a fingerprint, a trail. There were a lot of people at the wedding I wasn’t familiar with. I could never be too careful. I started filling the tank as she stood against the concrete beam.
She smirked. “Well, how am I going to get things I need?”
“You tell me what you need,” I answered as I topped off my gas tank.
Mama Hen was finishing up at the pump, and it looked like everyone was back outside.
“Very well,” she said before she turned.
Her ass sure looked good in her jeans. And they hugged her thighs. She was short but she had to have worked out a lot. She was toned with thick thighs and pronounced muscles but a nice, curvy shape. I thought about those thighs wrapped around me and almost offered for her to ride with me.
But instead I clenched my jaw and let her return to the SUV. It was still a long ride. And I wasn’t ready to have her on the bike. I just wanted to feel her body against mine. Instead, I checked in with my brothers, then we mounted up and headed home.
We rode through the remaining six hours. Besides all the shit with the Hellbound Heathens, trying to find Pa’s killer and the trafficking ring, and settling in as the national president,I now had a wife to add to the mix. On top of all that shit, this other mafia family may have an issue with me having her.
She had to get rid of her phone, and we had to move her funds somewhere else. There was a lot to be done once we returned.
Even with the racing thoughts of all of that, visions of her in her fancy little underwear from last night kept flashing through my mind. And that damn scent was burnt into my nose or something.
Maybe my mind wandering to her over and over wasn’t terrible because before I knew it, we were making the turn onto our long driveway to the clubhouse. It was dark out and the night air was cool. The tree lined drive was a balm to my soul.
Torches lit the grounds as we made it to the clearing and the clubhouse came into view. As I parked my Harley, I pulled my helmet off and hung it from the handlebar. Running my hands over my hair, I put it back into place. I drew in a huge breath and blew it out, the cool air crystalizing it like a plume of smoke.
“Home sweet home, Prez,” Eagle said.
Falcon stretched as he climbed off his bike. “Thank fuck we’re back where it’s normal.”
Rooster waved at us and jogged toward the SUV. Looking over, Kristie jumped from the SUV and he scooped her up.
